Healthy weight for a Chi & more questions

kiddo88 said:

I have read that all Chi's should be under 6 lbs. Is this so? My Chi is 4lb 6oz, so she does fall into this category- but I was just wondering if that is a healthy weight. Also, does anyone else have trouble getting their chi to gain? Ousi (my little girl!) seems a little skinny to me. She eats well, but when she plays she plays HARD (and of course, she can rarely sit still...) So I was just wondering if this is normal.
Just two more questions, promise!. haha. Is it normal for her to want to sleep a good bit and not play a whole lot? and is it normal for Chi's to rarely go in heat? I have mentioned it to her vet a few times and they don't seem worried. She will be 5 next month (October 16th) and she has only gone into heat (complete with bleeding....) twice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant, I have had her since she was about 8 weeks and she is close to 5 now, but I don't know anyone else who currently has a Chi and there are SO many conflicting answers on the internet- I just figured I would ask people with experience
thanks!

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The breed standard for Chis is under 6 lbs. however, many badly bred Chis weight more than this. Whether your girls weight is appropriate should not be based on the general standard but on her body type. You should be able to feel her ribs with little effort, but they should not be visible.

I too have a chi that is super active and has trouble keeping weight on him. What food do you feed her? I've noticed that since I changed my Toby to Ziwipeak his weight has been much better.

At her age, it is normal for her not to be as active as a younger dog. She is at the age when they usually start mellowing and calming down. Totally normal.

As far as heat goes, I am not an expert (I've only had one female dog in my life and she was spayed) but I believe that some Chis can go into "silent heat" where they don't really show any physical signs or bleed. Maybe it is that. Or maybe she just doesn't go into heat often- if she has always been on this schedule, maybe it is normal for her. I would be more worried if she had been going into heat regularly and all of the sudden stopped.

I hope I helped!


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pupluv168 said:

The breed standard for Chis is under 6 lbs. however, many badly bred Chis weight more than this. Whether your girls weight is appropriate should not be based on the general standard but on her body type. You should be able to feel her ribs with little effort, but they should not be visible.

I too have a chi that is super active and has trouble keeping weight on him. What food do you feed her? I've noticed that since I changed my Toby to Ziwipeak his weight has been much better.

At her age, it is normal for her not to be as active as a younger dog. She is at the age when they usually start mellowing and calming down. Totally normal.

As far as heat goes, I am not an expert (I've only had one female dog in my life and she was spayed) but I believe that some Chis can go into "silent heat" where they don't really show any physical signs or bleed. Maybe it is that. Or maybe she just doesn't go into heat often- if she has always been on this schedule, maybe it is normal for her. I would be more worried if she had been going into heat regularly and all of the sudden stopped.

I hope I helped!

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Hey, thanks so much for all of the answers! She is just so little. haha. Very petite. I just put a picture of her in the forum for pictures. I think I titled it "Newbie! Pictures of my little girl. " You can see her there. I can feel her ribs easily, but can only see them when she lays in the odd positions all twisted and contorted (LOL) on her back like she tends to do. haha. She eats Pedigree Adult Formula. Are Chi's supposed to have a certain food? Yea, she is almost 5 so I figured she would be calming down- but she certainly still loves to bark at people.
About not going into heat- we have a male siberian husky ( such a beautiful big boy!) and the one time she has gone into heat since he has been an entirely inside dog he went NUTS. BUT, thank goodness* he played the protective big brother role. He wouldn't let anyone but my husband and I around her. He's such a good big puppy brother So, would he be able to tell if she went into "silent heat"? B/c this is the ONLY time he has acted like that- and she only bled about 2 or 3 drops the whole time, so maybe that was a silent heat? haha IDK. All I know is the vet said that she is in good health, and not to worry about it- so I generally don't. Just wanted to know if anyone else had that issue. I also read that maybe it could be because she is a runt?.. Who knows. lol

A healthy weight is dependent by each dog.

My girls are 3.3 lbs., 3.8 lbs. and 4.1 lbs. Each is healthy for her own body shape. All three are shaped very differently.

There are some here who have dogs MUCH smaller than mine (like in the 2 lb. range) and they are at a healthy weight for their frame.

In addition to being able to feel ribs, the dog should have a nice tuck at the waist. People often overfeed Chis and other small dogs. That is why you see a lot of cylindrical or "sausage" bodied Chis. They still may only weigh 6 pounds but they are too heavy for their frame.

Pedigree is perhaps the worst food that you could feed. She needs nutrition. GOOD nutrition. With our little ones, every single bite counts. Here is a link to an unbiased ratings site. You will want to strive for a 5 star food. You will see that what you are currently offering her is a 1 star food!
Pedigree Dry Dog Food | Review and Rating

I promise that the money you spend on her nutrition now will come back 100 fold in need for frequent/expensive vet bills and the quality and length of her life.